This Strip of Paper Can Save Lives

PEOPLE DON’T WANT TO DIE, THEY JUST WANT TO GET HIGH –

Dec. 1, 2021 – “We’re at a greater risk for having unknown substances put into the drugs,” said Tanya, 45, who lives in Greensboro, North Carolina. She asked that CNN not use her last name to protect her privacy.

Tanya has been using heroin on and off for the past 20 years, but she says now is the most dangerous time to use.

“It’s so uncertain,” she says of the drug supply.

“If I change dealers, or I get something from somebody that I don’t know, I definitely want to have it tested,” she added.

Fentanyl test strips were first developed as way to screen for people using fentanyl by testing their urine, but harm reduction groups found a way to utilize the strips to help keep the drug supply safer.

The strips cost not much more than a dollar, can be found on Amazon, and are easy to use. The paper strip can be dipped into a solution made by mixing a bit of drug with water. As with a pregnancy or rapid Covid-19 test, the strip can show results in a matter of minutes: one line means positive for fentanyl, two lines, negative.

Making drug use safer is known as harm reduction. Instead of demanding complete abstinence from people, harm reduction takes mitigation steps like access to clean needles and the overdose reversal drug naloxone to keep drug users safe.